NPC to mull superministries, promotions

The National People’s Congress will discuss senior cabinet appointments and government restructuring at its two-week session starting Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported. The restructuring, seen as being aimed at centralizing power and reducing bureaucratic infighting, would combine several of China’s existing state agencies into a smaller number of "superministries." It is also thought likely that the China’s State Environmental Protection Agency will be elevated to full ministry level, giving it more money and power to fight pollution. Cabinet appointments are expected to consolidate President Hu Jintao’s leadership. Former Shanghai party secretary Xi Jinping will likely be appointed Vice President, placing him in a strong position to succeed Hu, and former Liaoning provincial chief Li Keqiang, a Hu ally, is expected to be named first vice premier. Both Xi and Li were appointed to the Polituburo Standing Committee at the Chinese Communist Party Congress in October.